Last time, we detailed the build of
our basic ROV (remotely operated
vehicle) for the MATE 2008 ROV

Competition using the ROV-in-a-box
kit from !nventivity and the help of
UCSD’s Tau Beta Pi chapter, CA Psi.
After building a very basic working
ROV from the kit and proving its
functionality at the Southern California
regional competition, it was now time
to add onto the kit bot with our own
mechanisms to allow it to complete
three missions based on a scenario of
mid-ocean ridge research.

Missions Possible

We briefly explained the 2008

ARM MECHANISM AND HOPPER.

14 SERVO 09.2008

missions last time, but we think they
deserve another look.

The three missions are presented
in a scenario of mid-ocean ridge
research. Intrepid scientists have
placed an Ocean Bottom Seismometer
(OBS) on the sea floor to study seismic
activity like ocean floor spreading.
When it comes time to retrieve the
OBS, there is good news and bad
news. The good news is that a seismic
event was indeed captured, and the
valuable data can be used to expand
our knowledge about the vast frontier
of the ocean floor. The bad news is
that the heroic OBS was tragically
caught in a lava flow and is now stuck
on the ocean floor. Will its valuable
data be lost forever? Will it be
doomed to spend the rest of its days
trapped in the vast and crushing
prison of the ocean depths? Not if an
ROV has anything to say about it!

Our first mission is to free the

Special Thanks to

!nventivity, for getting the ball rolling
with the ROV-in-a-box, Tau Beta Pi, CA
Psi for being a great robot team, and
Jill Zande and the entire MATE Center
for putting on such a great event.

OBS from the ocean floor by dislodging
it from the merciless lava flow. Our
second mission is to retrieve three
samples of lava for analysis and return
them to the surface. Our final mission
is to acquire a temperature reading
from a hydrothermal vent on the
ocean floor — one of the many
exciting phenomena caused by the
tumultuous geology of the ocean
floor. Our ROV, of course, would not
be asked to brave the depths of the
ocean floor, so our ocean is represented by Canyonview West Pool on the
UCSD campus. The OBS is represented
by a PVC box with the approximate
dimensions of a 25 cm cube. The OBS
is attached to a 50 cm square of ABS
upon which are situated the representations of the lava flow: eight 2 lb soft
dive weights. The hydrothermal vent
is another PVC structure, a vertical
cylinder 3 inch in diameter with a
. 5 inch diameter stem through which
hot water is spouted.

Going Off Script

The ROV kit from !nventivity gave
us an excellent platform, but on its
own it was not really able to complete
the missions. It was equipped with a